 Influenced by India, Chinese, Islamic, European and American cultures over 2,500 of years  520 million people live in region  2,500 years ago groups from China moved into region  Khmers- Cambodia, Vietnam  Mons- Myanmar  Malays- Malay Peninsula and Indonesia  Developed agricultural civilizations

 Population densities vary across region  Laos lowest population density  Vietnam highest  Population concentrated along fertile coastal plain  Ready supply of water, transportation, fertile land  Many moving to cities for economic opportunity

Cities  For centuries majority lived in rural villages  Many today moving to urban areas  Cities provide greater opportunities and access  11 cities of more than 1 million  Some countries have primate city, economic center, major port, often the capital  Bangkok- 650% growth over 50 year period ( )  Public services not adequate, government trying offer incentives to have industry and cities return to rural areas

 Since 1970’s because of political and economic troubles many SE Asians left region  US has large numbers of immigrants from the region  Causes countries to lose skilled labor force needed for economic growth

 Early Civilizations- agricultural, based on rice production, domesticated cattle and pigs  Funan- first empire in SE Asia, adopted Hinduism, Indian model of centralized government  Khmer Empire- surplus agriculture brought wealth to mainland  1100’s-1200’s Khmer Empire, based in present day Cambodia  Advanced irrigation and agriculture allowed them to feed huge population and diversify society  Angkor Wat architectural achievement, designed to resemble home of Hindu gods

 Srivijaya Empire- based on island of Sumatra  Maritime empire controlled trade in the region  Used navy to control Straits of Malacca  Vietnam- struggled against Chinese  China conquered region 111 B.C.  Introduced ideas about religion, government and philosophy

 Western Colonization- 1500’s Europeans begin to control trade  Siam (Thailand) was a buffer state separating British and French controlled areas, only southeast Asian area to remain free from European control  Europeans brought change to region  Built roads, railroads, improved harbors, expanded mining, established commercial plantations  All profits went to westerners  Increased tension and conflict in region  Asians received low wages  Plantation owners imported workers to meet growing demand for goods, contributed to ethnic diversity of region

 Post WWII- after war countries struggle to regain control of region, SE Asians wanted independence, after two decades all countries were independent of European powers  Communism divided Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia  Vietnam- US unsuccessfully intervened in the 1960’s and 1970’s to stop spread of communism  Ethnic conflicts across region have resulted in militant terrorist groups emerging (many anti- western)  Some countries have recently moved toward democracy, some are still communist (Laos, Vietnam), Myanmar is a military dictatorship

 Since 1970’s population growth slow in Cambodia  lost 38% of population due to harsh rule by Khmer Rouge communist government  Forced people out of cities to countryside to become farmers  More than 1 million died  Starvation, torture, execution of people considered intellectuals (doctors, teachers)

 Cultures in region reflect ethnic diversity  China and India shaped much of the cultural development of the region  Since 1945 literacy has increased in parts of region where there are resources  Health care is inadequate in many countries, mostly in rural areas  Many different languages spoken  Come from 2 major language families- Sino-Tibetan, Mon-Khmer  Many languages reflect colonial power French (Vietnam)  All major religions of the world are represented  Buddhism is the predominant religion

 Includes Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, East Timor, Philippines  Spices attracted outsiders to region  Merchants from India came for spices and introduced Hinduism and Buddhism  Chinese influenced cultures of Brunei and Singapore where more than 70% of population has Chinese ancestry  Around 800 A.D. Arab traders came and introduced Islam  1500’s Europeans arrive to take advantage of trade and natural resources

 People live mostly along coastal plain, mountainous interiors are sparsely populated  Population growing faster than global average  Some islands have high population densities  Java has over 2,300 people per square mile  Singapore is the most densely populated country  People migrate to cities for economic and educational opportunities  Jakarta has over 10 million people, the government is trying to reduce overcrowding by relocating population to smaller islands

 History of region is connected to control of trade routes  Different empires have profited from control of Straits of Malacca  Today Singapore owes its prosperity to these same trade routes  Europeans brought physical improvements  After WWII many countries won their independence from European powers  2002 East Timor, a Catholic country gained its independence from largely Muslim Indonesia  1998 Indonesia moved toward democracy after years of a dictatorship  Philippines, East Timor and Singapore are democracies  Brunei and Malaysia are constitutional monarchies

 Since independence education and health care and quality of life have improved  Literacy rates are high  Health care is better than mainland SE Asia  Indonesia has government sponsored health care and Singapore has health care as good as developed countries  Indonesia has over 300 ethnic groups and 250 distinct languages, makes it hard to unify country  Other regional languages reflect colonialism; Philippines, Malaysia (English),  Islam is wide spread across the region, Indonesia is the largest Islamic country in the world  The Philippines are mostly Roman Catholic

 Architecture- religious structures influenced by religion  Borobudur Temple- Indonesia, built of volcanic stone, stages of shrines represent Buddha's journey to enlightenment  Catholic Churches built by Spanish  Mosques found in Muslim countries